To connect with Pocahontas in nature, walk in her footsteps along the York River in York River State Park. At Jamestown Settlement, visitors can explore the re-created Powhatan Village, where interpreters demonstrate grinding corn, gardening or playing a game of corncob darts as Pocahontas likely did. Her time spent at James Fort with the early colonist is immortalized at Historic Jamestowne with a larger-than-life bronze statue, and you can see the remains of the church where she and Rolfe were married. Pocahontas’ story can be found all around the Greater Williamsburg area.
![princess pocahontas princess pocahontas](https://www.storynory.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/pocahontas-339x600.jpg)
However, as the family began their journey back to Virginia, she became sick and passed away in Gravesend, England. Later, after marrying Rolfe at James Fort, she gave birth to a son they named Thomas. They traveled to England to promote the colony to investors, and she was celebrated throughout London. Growing up, Pocahontas visited Jamestown often, delivering messages from her father and accompanying Indians trading hatchets and trinkets for food and furs. Though Rolfe worried about his decision to be with a non-Christian woman, he married her “for the good of the plantation, the honor of our country, for the glory of God, for mine own salvation….” Powhatan gave his blessing to this peace-making marriage, but sent Pocahontas’ uncle to witness the ceremony at James Fort. She was only about 18 years old when she married Rolfe, creating peace between the Natives and the colonists. He escaped, but later was involved in a gunpowder accident which forced him to return to England.Ĭonsidered an Indian “princess,” Pocahontas was the daughter of Powhatan, the chief among thirty Native American tribes located in the Virginia area. However, when trade negotiations Smith was leading turned for the worse, Pocahontas snuck to Smith’s camp to warn him that her father had ordered him to be killed. Though her relationship with Smith has been romanticized over time, it was purely platonic. Faithful FriendĬontrary to the Disney film, Pocahontas’ actually married John Rolfe, a widow and tobacco farmer, not John Smith. In fact, Pocahontas was a nickname meaning, “playful one,” but her secret name, Matoaka, means, “bright steam between the hills.” Known also as Amonute, historians believe her original name was Matoax, which she later changed to Rebecca, meaning “mother of two peoples.”” 2. It was common for Native Americans to have several names, including secret names. In the meantime, surprise your dinner guests with these five roles the beloved Native American played during her lifetime. Plan a trip this fall to visit 'Pocahontas Imagined' at Jamestown Settlement, an exhibit exploring her legacy featuring copies of portraits, sculptures, memorabilia and interactive experiences to give context to her enduring story. But beyond the Disney-famous details, how much do you know about Pocahontas? Most people know the legendary Pocahontas as a young Native American woman who was instrumental in inspiring peace between the Indians and the English settlers in Jamestown, Virginia.